Tag Archives: Dash

Whether it's for environmental or economic reasons, monitoring fuel consumption has never been of greater concern for drivers. And Dash, a new iPhone, iPad and iPod car accessory, will help you keep on top of things. As gas prices and carbon emission levels continue to rise, this iOS accessory tracks your fuel use as well as a slew of other things, so you can drive cheaper, greener, and more efficiently.

A low-energy Bluetooth device, Dash plugs directly into your car's On-Board Diagnostics port (OBD) and transmits data to your iPhone or any other Apple device. (All cars made after 1995 are equipped with an OBD port.)

It then tracks and analyses the data through the Dash app. From there, you can publish your data to a drivewithdash.com account, to better monitor your driving data and share with others.

According to Dash, this community aspect: "makes it easy to see your fuel usage over time, log overall miles, or determine the most economic way to drive to work. You can even compare your driving style or vehicle with other users to help improve your savings."

And the online Dash community even makes it easy for you to arrange splitting on gas with other users. The result is a better understanding of your fuel consumption as well as solutions on how to improve it.

but aside from gas use, this nifty iPhone accessory for your car can help you detect maintenance issues, "even before your check engine light comes on." Again, the Dash community can provide you with quick tips for troubleshooting from other users who have experienced similar problems.

And, if you've got an iPhone car mount, Dash's DashCam feature will even let you "record a video with trip and engine details overlaid on top." Sharing videos on YouTube or social media is a snap too, as Dash has Facebook and Twitter integration.

We've never quite seen an iPhone, iPad or iPod car accessory quite like this yet. And the entire concept, from the low-energy car-powered Bluetooth device, to the social aspect and video feature, is pretty exciting. But more importantly, Dash may just be the first iPhone accessory that can both help you save money and become a greener driver.